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The Wrap on a Great 2014 Annual Conference

September 18, 2014

By Paul Gionfriddo, President/CEO

Mental Health America hosted its 2014 Annual Conference in Atlanta last week, and it was a terrific and energizing event. Those who attended know what I’m talking about – the drive, the content, the messaging, the enthusiasm in the room – well, pretty much everything – suggested that in Mental Health America and its affiliates we have some of the most innovative, dedicated, and inspiring mental health advocates in the nation.

Here’s just a sampling of what transpired over the two days:

13 programs from affiliates around the country were featured in our new Innovation Nation program. This will become a fixture at future annual conferences, highlighting some of the most innovative programs in the country. Included among this year’s programs were this year’s Innovation in Programming Award winner, the Texas Youth Suicide Prevention Project of MHA Texas, and last year’s winner, the MHA Palm Beach County (FL) Be Merge health and behavioral health integration program.

We laid out the vision of MHA, with its focus on prevention for all, early identification and intervention for those at risk, integrated health and behavioral health services for those who need them, and recovery as our goal.

As our participants – who were uniform in their praise for the meeting – noticed, MHA is very much on the move these days. We made the most of our two days together this year, and we’ll be making the most of our new initiatives in the months to come.

And we’re already turning our attention to next year’s meeting. So “mark” down the date for joining us at the Hilton Mark Center on June 3-5, 2015.

There we’ll feature:

More Innovation Nation programming;

An Open House in our Mental Health America offices;

#B4Stage4, screening program, and mental health status updates;

More great speakers;

Hill Day visit opportunities for all who want to do them; and

The Clifford Beers Dinner – our signature dinner event – which will once again be included in the price of the registration.

Stay tuned for details about how to register. And I’ll see you next year!